2011

2011 sure flew by for me…so here’s to slower paced (not likely) and productive 2012!   Happy New Year!!

Slowing down

I always have mixed feelings after Christmas…the past month was especially crazy with my husband Graduating, family get-togethers, traveling, and lots of To Do’s…so its hard to switch gears and get into slow down mode.  Yesterday I took Ben downtown to paint a piggy bank…and broke out a new rotary cutter:

After a couple of practice cuts I’m in love.  You hold in the handle gently and the blade pops out…and the handle locks to keep it away from little hands.  I constantly forget to pull my blade back in on my old one…so it will be one less thing for me to think about!  I bought mine at Joann’s during the sales.   Hope you had a Merry Christmas!

Started, used, and finished

We made the long trip home to Seattle for Christmas with our car packed full.  I’ve got a load of projects I want to work on…starting with a new quilt for next Christmas (up top)…snuggling with an oldie but goodie….and trying to get curly hair to rock with me and my pregnant self (he won’t).

This flannel quilt was finished just in time and is getting good use watching Christmas movies.

If I don’t get a chance to check in before Christmas…have a Happy Holiday! 

Bagged

I’ve spent no time in my sewing room thanks to pre-Holiday craziness, but last night I snuck in to sew up this cute little drawstring bag thanks to Jeni’s fab (and famous) tutorial.

It makes any gift card + candy cane kisses look handmade. :) I really want to make the big one next.

I got this cute stack amidst in the mail the other day. It is my first time with Organic fabrics…and I really love these muted colors. I’m not sure what I’ll do with these yet…they are just so cute (and soft!) they need the perfect project.

In the mean time they are sure cute to look at. These are by Birch Fabrics, the line is called Circa 52 found here, here, or here.

Received

My sweet friend Jayme gave me this quilt last week for baby-on-the-way.  I almost cried…it’s not very often that people give me a quilt.  She’ll be mad at me that I blogged it…but it’s the law in my house that no quilts go un-blogged around here.

It was inspired by Vanessa’s pattern, and Coleen’s amazing totes.

She brought it over and told me how it wasn’t perfect and something about a mistake here or there…but I really really love it.  A quilt isn’t a quilt without mistakes…and it is such a great reminder to me that receiving a quilt is really special.  So thank you Jayme again…I love it and baby will too!

Sprocket Pincushions

I took a break from my To-Do list last weekend to make a new pincushion (or 2).  These would make cute little gifts, so I included a quick template and tutorial if you’d like to make your own. 

You’ll need to print the template found at the link below:

Sprocket pincushion template

1. Cut out 10 wedges

2. Use a 1/4" seam allowance.  Pin and sew the wedges into 2 halves, pressing the seams open, or towards the colored fabrics.  Be careful not to stretch all those bias edges!

3. Sew the halves together. You’ll notice even my wedges stretched slightly during sewing and didn’t line up after sewing…just trim off the excess slightly with scissors to make a nice round circle again.  Press the seam open to reduce bulk.

4. For the back you’ll need a 8 1/2" square of fabric.  Cut the fabric in half down the middle.

5. Now sew the two halves back together…but this time leave a 2" hole in the center for turning.  Make sure to backstitch really well on either side of the opening so it won’t come apart during stuffing.

6. Center the top of the pincushion right side down on the backing with the turning hole in the center.  Pin and sew all the way around the edges…no need to leave another hole.

7.  Trim around the circle with scissors and turn right side out through the hole in the back.  Press.

8.  Stuff it good and tight through the hole in the back…then ladder stitch the hole closed.

9.  Add a button just like I did on the Sprocket Pillows (scroll to the bottom) and you’re done!  Moosh it around good to get the stuffing around the edges and stick some pins in it.

Simple Christmas

This year I resisted the urge to get out every Christmas nic- nack I’ve accumulated and kept things simple.  Just a few quilts…

and some new pillow cases from Grandma…a new tradition in our house.  Isn’t that fabric with the people cute?  Not sure what it is but its cute!

We even got a much smaller tree….which still has ALL the big ornaments globbed in this section thanks to my helpful 4 year old…must fix that tonight after bed time.

Although I love all of my decorations…it is so nice to have out the things I really love instead of everything.  Makes it a little more special (and a little less stressful). 

Out of the block pile

These cute little blocks have been done, sitting in a box since March waiting to be used.  They finally got their time at the sewing machine the other day:

I’m not a big fan of improv piecing like the this…I like the look of it but doing it is like doing a puzzle.  I don’t like puzzles.  :)  I’m in awe of quilters who love (and are good at!) doing improv all the time.

Luckily this one didn’t take too much figuring out to get all the blocks sewn together and spaced how I wanted them…but you can see with all those little strips here and there…it takes some planning!